The Warrior Challenge!
by Dawn-Leaf21
Summary: Goldenspider and her friends are chosen to compete in a competition known as the warrior challenge, where they have to perform activities like tree climbing and swimming. Based on me and my friend's role play, all of the characters being our Warrior OCs. It may only be quite short in the end.
1. Chapter 1

**Goldenspider's POV**

A small, slender, golden she-cat trampled through unknown woodland territory, her big sea green eyes glancing around with curiosity. She had no idea where she was, she wasn't any good with directions at all. The she-cat was from CloudClan, but she seemed to have a bad habit of sneaking out of camp to find a certain StoneClan tom… Which on that particular day wasn't such a good idea especially since it was the afternoon when lots of cats were about.

A sudden rustle made the she-cat jump and an orange tabby she-cat with green eyes stepped out from behind a mossy tree. "Goldenspider? What are you doing on StormClan territory?" The orange she-cat asked. She was called Tigerlily. Goldenspider was lucky it was her who caught her and not someone else because Tigerlily and she were good friends.

"Oh, sorry," Goldenspider apologised looking down, somewhat ashamed of herself. "I'm lost again."

Tigerlily smirked. "Looking for Foxspeckle again, huh?" she asked, amused.

Goldenspider felt herself blush at Foxspeckle's name. He was her Senpai, but unfortunately for her, he was from StoneClan. "Umm, no. That's absolutely ridiculous," she lied, still staring at the ground.

Tigerlily shook her head, letting it go for now. Goldenspider was thankful her friend wasn't angry at her for being on her territory. "So, have you heard about the warrior challenge?" Tigerlily asked, changing the subject.

Goldenspider pricked her ears in interest. "No, I haven't. What is it?"

"It's kind of like a special Gathering," her friend explained. "Two warriors from each Clan compete with each other in a series of challenges." Tigerlily stopped to make her voice sound more dramatic. "Alone. All night. Just the handsomest tom, your father and you all night." She sighed happily. Goldenspider smiled, knowing she was referring to her crush, Goldenheart.

The warrior challenge sounded fun! Maybe Goldenspider was in it. "Cool!" she exclaimed. "When is it?"

"Tonight." Tigerlily sighed again.

"How do they choose who's in it?" Goldenspider asked.

"They just do. Anyway, we got off topic," Tigerlily said. "If you're not looking for Foxspeckle, what _are_ you doing?" Tigerlily tilted her head to one side.

"Ummm…" Goldenspider tried to think of a lie. "Hunting?" she replied unconvincingly, looking down at her empty paws.

"In StormClan hunting grounds?" Tigerlily questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Fine. I give up," Goldenspider sighed, supposing there was actually no point in lying. "Where's StoneClan territory at?"

Tigerlily paused, unsure. "Uh…" She pointed in a random direction. "Over there… Maybe." She shrugged. "By the way, Flatface is looking for you."

Goldenspider shuddered at just the thought of him. Flatface was a very annoying GrassClan tom with a flat face, as you may have been able to guess. For whatever reason, he seemed to think that Goldenspider and he were dating. "Well, tell him to find a she-cat with a face similar to his own," Goldenspider told her.

Suddenly, a groan sounded from behind a prickly bramble hedge, causing both she-cats to jump.

"Who's there?" Goldenspider asked.

"COME OUT OR I'LL FLAY YOU!" Tigerlily yelled threateningly.

A familiar speckled reddish-brown tom struggled out from under the bush a few seconds later. _Foxspeckle!_ Goldenspider thought. _What was he doing here?_

The handsome tom flopped onto the ground in front of the she-cats as if he wanted to cause a scene. "Ow," he said simply, looking from one cat to the other dramatically.

Goldenspider could see painful looking thorns embedded in his pelt. _What was he doing in the brambles? Was he hurt?_ They had to help him! "Oh my StarClan, are you okay?" Goldenspider asked worriedly, stepping closer to him. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, last time I checked, you aren't StormClan either," Foxspeckle responded, not exactly giving Goldenspider the kind of answer she wanted.

"Tigerlily?" Another tom stepped out of the bushes. With his golden fur and green eyes, Goldenspider recognised him as Goldenheart. Well, now they had a crowd.

Tigerlily didn't seem entirely delighted by her crush's presence, as most cats would be. "Now what?" she muttered under her breath.

Goldenheart looked confused, looking from the she-cats to Foxspeckle, who was still lying on the ground. "Tigerlily… Tigerlily, why are with Goldenspider?" Then he inspected Foxspeckle more carefully. Goldenheart dropped his voice to a mutter. "And a good-looking tom…" Goldenspider agreed silently with the good-looking part, but Goldenheart needn't be jealous of Foxspeckle. He only liked Tigerlily as a friend. Goldenheart must have liked Tigerlily a lot…

"Oh, he's just a friend," Tigerlily replied airily, apparently not hearing the last words of Goldenheart's sentence.

Goldenheart frowned as if he wasn't convinced. A few seconds passed without speech.

"Hey, um, Could someone help me?" Foxspeckle asked, breaking the silence. He was now sitting up and looking down at all the prickles in his normally smooth pelt.

Goldenspider jumped at the opportunity to get nearer to him. "I will," she said quickly, sitting beside him.

"Why are you two here anyway?" Goldenheart demanded. "This isn't StoneClan _or_ CloudClan territory."

Goldenspider racked her mind for an excuse. She couldn't tell Goldenheart she got lost in the woods looking for another Clan's territory. "I- I uhmm…" She stammered, lost for words.

"Our leaders sent us patrolling to look out for Twoleg things," Foxspeckle put in for her.

"Yes, yes," Goldenspider agreed, looking at him thankfully. She wasn't very good at lying. Goldenspider still wondered why Foxspeckle was actually here though…

"Whatever," Goldenheart meowed, not entirely convinced. "Who are you anyway?" he squinted at Foxspeckle, and then his green eyes lit up in recognition of the cat. "Oh! Aren't you the cat Goldenspider is in lov-"

Goldenheart stopped as Flatface had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Goldenspider was half grateful since she was pretty sure Goldenheart was about to expose her secret, but then again, it was _Flatface_ who had probably used _black magic_ to get there.

"Babe," Flatface purred to Goldenspider in his version of a seductive voice (which isn't quite what a normal person would label 'seductive', but all right). "Flatface is here for you-"

He was interrupted as Tigerlily had kicked him away, using such force that he was sent flying over the hills, yowling the whole way. Goldenspider shuddered. Well, at least that episode kept Goldenheart from telling Foxspeckle about her crush on him. How did Goldenheart even know anyway?

"Thanks Tigerlily," Goldenspider mewed, relieved. "That was close."

Tigerlily nodded. Both toms looked very confused, which Goldenspider didn't blame them. Flatface was a very strange cat.

Goldenheart shook his head. "Anyway," he started to Foxspeckle. "Are you the cat Goldenspider is in lov-"

He was luckily interrupted again, this time by Tigerlily. "Who likes mice?" she asked, jumping about overenthusiastically. "I know I do! Let's go hunt mice! Silently. With no talking about words beginning with the letter 'L'," she said, looking pointedly at Goldenheart.

Foxspeckle was looking more and more confused by the second. This was a good thing, Goldenspider decided, because that meant he had no idea about her feelings for him.

"I'm not hungry- Ow!" Tigerlily stepped on Goldenheart's tail, interrupting him. "Why is it always violence with you?" Goldenheart growled at her.

Tigerlily grinned. "It's not violence, it's communication!"

Goldenspider glanced at Foxspeckle, who was staring in wordless confusion at the two cats. She shrugged and pulled another burr from his shoulder.

"Ouch," Foxspeckle said, flinching slightly. "What are you two fighting for, anyway?" He asked Tigerlily and Goldenheart. "I thought Tigerlily lov-"

Again with the exposure of secrets! Secrets were meant to be kept secrets! "Hey look! There's one on your back!" Goldenspider exclaimed, saving her friend. She bent down and ripped the deeply embedded thorn from Foxspeckle's back viciously.

"OWWWWWW!" Foxspeckle yelped in pain. Goldenspider cringed, feeling sorry for hurting him. She threw the thorn aside.

Goldenheart raised an eyebrow. "You were saying?"

Tigerlily stood behind Goldenheart, making a motion at Foxspeckle by dragging her paw across her neck as if to say she would slit his throat if he said anything. Foxspeckle stared blankly for a moment, trying to understand.

"Foxspeckle, you were _saying_?" Goldenheart urged.

"Oh yes, uhmm… Tigerlily loves her… Potato. Yes," Foxspeckle nodded rapidly, satisfied with his answer.

Tigerlily paused. She suddenly started hopping around in circles crazily. "POTATOEZ!" she shouted psychotically, trying to prove Foxspeckle was right.

Goldenheart furrowed his brow, looking either worried, confused, or both. "…Right," he said. "Anyway, I came here to tell you, Tigerlily that we have to go back to camp and train for the warrior challenge!"

"Whoa," Foxspeckle stated with his eyes wide. "You got in?" Goldenspider thought it was pretty great too. They only picked the best warriors, right?

Goldenheart just looked at Tigerlily, realising she wasn't really listening, but staring at a burr on Foxspeckle's nose. Goldenspider noticed he was glaring and she wondered why. Perhaps he thought Tigerlily was staring at Foxspeckle for other reasons…? Like- oh no, he thought Tigerlily liked Foxspeckle!

Goldenspider quickly peeled the burr from Foxspeckle's nose to prevent any arguments between the two. "I wonder if I got in," Goldenspider wondered aloud, continuing the conversation. "Although, it's meant to be the best warriors, isn't it?"

"Yeah, so you'll definitely get in," Tigerlily told her.

Goldenspider smiled at the compliment. "Thanks," she replied, although she didn't really think she'd make it into the challenge. Goldenspider thought of herself as an average warrior; while pretty good at tree climbing and hunting, she was horrible with fighting, directions and loads of other things.

"Oh well, let's go see!" Foxspeckle suggested enthusiastically. Goldenspider thought he would probably get in. "Fancy me walking you home, Goldenspider?" he offered.

Goldenspider blushed. How could she refuse? "Sure," she replied happily.

"I don't think so!" Goldenheart bursted out, causing the three other cats to look at him curiously. " _I'll_ walk her home," he hissed.

Why would he do this? Goldenspider wondered if he might still be mad about Tigerlily staring at Foxspeckle. But that was a misunderstanding! And how would ignoring Tigerlily help him anyway?

Foxspeckle leaned in towards her ear. "Man, I think he's gone psycho!" he whispered. "Let's just run for it?" Goldenspider nodded at him and the couple bolted away in the direction of their Clans' territories, leaving a sad Tigerlily and an angry Goldenheart behind.


	2. Chapter 2

**Foxspeckle's POV**

Foxspeckle panted heavily as he and Goldenspider reached the stumps parting their territories. They had outrun the psychopath… What was with Goldenheart anyway? Why was he acting so weird?

"So I'll see you tonight I suppose," Foxspeckle said to Goldenspider.

Goldenspider looked doubtful. "At the warrior challenge? I probably won't get in, but you will for sure," she said.

Foxspeckle grinned. Of course she would get picked! "Don't be like that; of course you'll get in."

Goldenspider was looking at the ground. "You think so?" she asked, not looking up. Was she… Blushing?

Foxspeckle tried not to blush at the thought. He had to be cool. "Yeah," he replied. Goldenspider looked up at him and smiled. Foxspeckle loved her eyes. They were big, almost looking too large for her face, and the unusual colour of sea green. Thick, dark lashes lined them, giving her a dramatic look, especially when she blinked.

Ah, great, he was dreaming again. He could never be with Goldenspider, she was from CloudClan. It was lucky that they never got caught meeting with Tigerlily all the time…

Foxspeckle cleared his throat. "I'll, uh, see you around anyway," he said, bending over to lick her ear in farewell. Before Goldenspider could say any more, he turned and bounded away towards his camp.

 **Goldenspider's POV**

Goldenspider flopped onto one of the beanbags in the warriors' den and grabbed her silver laptop and her phone with a yellow case.

 **(Yes, the cats in this fiction have phones and laptops and stuff. They're special cats** **)**

She decided to text Tigerlily since she was probably mad at her for running away.

Goldenspider: _**Hey. Sorry I ran away from you.**_

Tigerlily: _**:T You left me with a jealous boyfriend!**_

Goldenspider: _ **I know and I'm so sorry, but he was going crazy or something! Forgives?**_

Tigerlily: _**…Fine.**_

Goldenspider was relieved that Tigerlily wouldn't stay mad at her.

Goldenspider: _**Yay! C U at the WC!**_

Tigerlily: _ **Yeah, cause you will totally be there!**_

Suddenly, Goldenspider heard her laptop make a beeping sound. She opened the lid excitedly. Maybe it was Foxspeckle! …Nope… It was Flatface… Come to bother her again.

Flatface: _**Will you marry me? If you don't reply it will mean yes ~Flatface**_

Goldenspider glared at the words on the screen. Why couldn't he just leave her alone? As she typed, she slammed her paws down angrily.

Goldenspider: _**Flatface! Srsly! Leave me alone! How did you even get my email address?**_

Flatface: _**I got it from Stoneshade. He knew it because it was your mother's. Also, Dirtbelly and Glownose had it.**_

Goldenspider slammed down the laptop lid. How dare Stoneshade give out her email address?! She had tried so hard to keep it from Flatface.

"STONESHADE!" she screamed at an innocent-looking Stoneshade in the corner.

"Ya?" he answered casually, looking up from his laptop like it was normal to be screamed at just to get someone's attention.

"HOW DARE YOU GIVE FLATFACE MY EMAIL?!" Goldenspider demanded.

Stoneshade shrugged. "Sorry," he said, sounding not very sincere. He went back to whatever he was doing.

"You better be…" Goldenspider growled. She didn't really believe him.

 **Tigerlily's POV**

Tigerlily was at StormClan camp, in her father, Orangestar's den.

"Orangestar, do you know who is in the warrior challenge?" she asked, wanting to know who she would have to suffer with. Tigerlily already knew that she and Goldenheart were entering and Foxspeckle and Goldenspider would probably be there, but she had to be sure.

"I only know that from GrassClan its Tumbleweed and Flatface," her father answered.

Tigerlily opened her mouth in shock. Flatface! Oh no… She quickly pulled out her phone and texted to Goldenspider:

 _ **RUN!**_

 **Goldenspider's POV**

"All cats gather beneath HighStump for a Clan meeting!" Cloudstar yowled from the top of her den. Everyone quickly gathered underneath her.

"I am about to announce who will be entering the warrior challenge tonight, as most of you know about," Cloudstar continued.

The cats cheered. Goldenspider was excited to know if she was chosen.

"For this special occasion I have chosen…" a drum roll sounded out of nowhere. "Redfeather and Goldenspider!"

Through the cheering, Goldenspider managed to shout a surprised, "Thank you!"

Cloudstar nodded and waited for the cheering to die down.

"Do you know what other warriors are entering?" Goldenspider asked. She hoped that she was with her friends.

Cloudstar paused, remembering. "From StoneClan, Copperheart and Foxspeckle. From StormClan, Tigerlily and Goldenheart and from GrassClan it's Tumbleweed and Flatface."

Goldenspider gasped. "Flatface? NOOOO!" she shrieked. She was _doomed_.

Goldenspider's phone beeped.

Flatface: _**Did u hear? We'll b 2gether 4ever!**_

Goldenspider threw her phone at the wall in shock, and then picked it back up again with more care, making sure the screen wasn't broken.

She typed:

 _ **Go to the Dark Forest.**_

Flatface quickly answered with:

 _ **Um… No. Okay, bye. I love u a lot. Kisses, Flatface.**_

Goldenspider, frustrated, hurled her phone to nowhere in particular and smacked Stormheart in the face.

"Hey!" he yelled, rubbing his head where the phone hit him.

"Sorry!" Goldenspider exclaimed, running over to retrieve the device. Thankfully, it still wasn't broken.

"We shall leave for Fourtrees soon," Cloudstar continued. "And Goldenspider, no phone-throwing or I shall exclude you from the warrior challenge."

Goldenspider nodded rapidly. She couldn't be excluded! "Yes Cloudstar, sorry," she apologised.

 **At Fourtrees…**

"Let the games begin!" bellowed Orangestar of StormClan from a tall rock. "From StormClan, I have chosen Tigerlily and Goldenheart!"

In turn the leaders spoke, Jadestar of GrassClan following Orangestar. "From GrassClan its Tumbleweed and Flatface."

Goldenspider rolled her eyes at Flaface's name being mentioned. Lucky her.

"From CloudClan its Goldenspider and Redfeather!" Cloudstar announced.

And lastly, Stonestar spoke. "And from StoneClan is Foxspeckle and Copperheart," he concluded.

"Let the warriors speak before we begin," Orangestar said, leaping off the rock, the other leaders trailing after him.

The warriors stood in a circle, looking at each other, the younger ones laughing nervously. What exactly were they meant to do?

Tigerlily spoke up first, bursting out an abrupt "Hi!" making some jump. She cleared her throat. "I'm Tigerlily. I like potato salad, yummy mice and non-jel boyfriends." With the last words, she looked pointedly at Goldenheart. The tom responded with an eye roll.

Goldenspider smiled at the couple. She decided that since Tigerlily spoke first, she was brave enough to introduce herself too. "I'm Goldenspider…" She blushed as all the cats stared at her. "I'm from CloudClan and I like…" She trailed off, for some reason glancing at Foxspeckle. "Fo- F – Frogs…. Yeah, frogs and newleaf." How stupid! She had almost said Foxspeckle's name and now he was giving her a strange look.

 _Mouse-brain!_ Goldenspider scolded herself.

Foxspeckle raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "Well… I'm Foxspeckle and I like spiders and the colour gold. Oh, and pretty CloudClan she-cats." He winked in Goldenspider's direction.

She felt her skin burn. Was he flirting? What he just described sounded a lot like her.

Flatface stood up abruptly. "Well I'm Flatface and I hate cats who flirt with other's girlfriends!" He glared at Foxspeckle.

Foxspeckle leaned in toward Goldenspider. "Do you know him?" he asked.

"I wish I didn't," Goldenspider sighed. "Just ignore him."

Flatface had approached Foxspeckle and was staring right at his face, their noses almost touching. Foxspeckle looked uncomfortable and Goldenspider didn't blame him. "You wanna fight me?" Flatface said threateningly. Foxspeckle shuffled away from him.

"The prize is lady Goldenspider's paw!" Flatface roared, charging at Foxspeckle. Instead of ramming into him like he intended, Flatface tripped on a stick and face planted into a muddy puddle.

Goldenspider rolled her eyes, and then gritted her teeth. "Flatface! I am not a prize! Let alone, your girlfriend!" She exclaimed, exasperated. She looked around, seeing that all the other cats were staring at her, both in confusion and amusement.

Flatface looked up at Goldenspider from his place on the ground, watery mud dripping from his face. He looked thoughtful for a moment. "Yes, I must agree that from this unflattering angle that you are no prize or worthy to be my girlfriend." He stood up and strutted off.

A few moments of silence passed. Goldenspider didn't quite believe that Flatface had finally gone off her. "Thank StarClan for that," she said, wiping a drop of sweat from her forehead. Tigerlily and Foxspeckle laughed.

Goldenspider looked ahead and spotted a handsome, dark golden brown tom with striking emerald green eyes push past a few cats and make his way toward her and Tigerlily. _Who was_ that? Goldenspider thought. She hated to admit it, but she actually thought he was handsomer than Foxspeckle…

"Hi," the tom said. "I'm Tumbleweed." Then he looked at Goldenspider and Tigerlily in turn. "You two are pretty." He grinned flirtatiously, and then as the two she-cats blushed, he blushed too as if just realising what he said.

Goldenspider stared at Tumbleweed in awe. _He was so cute…_ _And he had a nice name too. Did he really think Tigerlily and her were pretty?_ She was oblivious to Foxspeckle glaring at Tumbleweed.

"T-t-t-t thanks Tumbleweed," Tigerlily stuttered.

"Yeah, well, it's the truth," he answered. Tumbleweed and Tigerlily stared at each other for a few moments.

"Goldenspider, let's go," Foxspeckle said, breaking all the she-cat's thoughts about Tumbleweed.

"Hm? Oh sure," Goldenspider replied. She couldn't help but study Foxspeckle's facial expression because one of his eyes was twitching. _Was he angry? Nah, it's probably just a nervous twitch_ , Goldenspider thought to herself.

"Wait!" Goldenheart meowed loudly. Everyone turned to him. "Who's the angry red girl and Copperwhat?" he asked.

Goldenspider smirked at his silly descriptions, but she still knew who he was talking about. "Redfeather and Copperheart, you mean? Why?" She didn't receive an answer, Goldenheart just walked over to Redfeather. _What was he doing?_

"Hey there!" he said happily.

"Hello…" Redfeather replied, as if she wasn't sure why a younger warrior would ever want to speak to her.

"Are you older than Flatface?" he asked. Goldenspider wondered what they were trying to prove.

"No, I don't believe so…" Redfeather answered.

"So you're cool then!" Tigerlily told her.

"What do you mean?"

"Flatface is older than the average elder, but refuses to retire," Tigerlily explained. "If you are his age or older, then your lame."

Redfeather turned away with a creased brow.

Tumbleweed smiled at Tigerlily and Tigerlily blushed. Goldenheart glared at him.

"How about we warm up in groups?" Goldenheart suggested.

Tumbleweed shrugged. "All right. How about me, Tigerlily and Goldenspider?" He stood up and stretched. "Coming? I thought we could take a run or catch some fresh-kill. Two fit, pretty she-cats should be able to handle it." He winked, causing more blushing from the she-cats and more glaring from the toms.

"Sure, let's go," Goldenspider replied, afterwards looking at Foxspeckle and regretting her choice. He looked pretty bothered by it.

"You, Foxspectacle, can go with Goldenhear-"Tumbleweed started.

"It's Foxspeckle," he muttered sharply.

Tumbleweed smirked as if he'd meant to do it. "Sorry, Fox _speckle_ and Goldenheart can go with Flatface. Redfeather, Copperheart and…" he looked around, seeing no one else. "Well, you two are a group. Let's go Goldenspider, Tigerlily." He licked them both on their ears.

Foxspeckle flattened his ears back. "Who put him in charge?" he hissed to himself. Nobody heard him, which was probably a good thing.

"Coming?" Tumbleweed urged.

"YES!" Tigerlily exclaimed with a bit too much enthusiasm. "I mean…" she coughed.

"Goldenspider?" Tumbleweed asked, looking at the she-cat hopefully.

"Ummm…." Goldenspider glanced at Foxspeckle. He looked angry, but he might get over it. Who said she couldn't make friends with toms? "Yeah, I'm coming."

 **Foxspeckle's POV**

Foxspeckle sniffed as he watched Goldenspider walk away with the other tom. Yes, it was true that Tumbleweed was probably more good-looking than him, but that didn't make it alright for Goldenspider to just leave him. Couldn't she see his feelings for her? Maybe Goldenspider just didn't feel the same way. Or maybe Foxspeckle was overreacting.

Goldenheart approached Foxspeckle and sat down in front of him. "We should kill Tumbleweed," he proposed, a glare in his pale green eyes.


	3. Chapter 3

**Foxspeckle's POV**

Foxspeckle looked at Goldenheart in surprise. _We should kill Tumbleweed_ , Goldenheart's words echoed in his mind. He didn't really mean it, did he? Foxspeckle couldn't just _kill_ someone! But still… Tumbleweed was causing them trouble, trying to _steal_ their girlfriends. Well, future girlfriends.

"Well, that's an idea," Foxspeckle replied thoughtfully. "…We'd have to do it unnoticed."

"I suppose," Goldenheart agreed. He paused, thinking. "…Maybe we should just embarrass him instead."

 _Phew. So we don't have to kill anyone_ , Foxspeckle thought in relief.

"Like… Make him face plant or something…" Goldenheart suggested unsurely. "Tell him deathberries are made of chocolate so he eats them. …But that would kill him." He frowned for a moment, but then smiled evilly.

 _What a mouse-brained idea._ Foxspeckle rolled his eyes. "He probably knows what a deathberry is."

"No, he's too dumb," Goldenheart laughed like he had said something hilarious.

"How do you know that?" Foxspeckle asked. He seriously doubted Tumbleweed was dumb. "Something tells me he's one of those flawless toms."

"Well, he's stealing our girls," Goldenheart meowed. "What do you think we should do?"

Foxspeckle didn't really know. They couldn't _kill_ him, that was unnecessary. They had to do something that was reasonable. "I think we should warn him when we're somewhere quiet. We'll just tell him that he's bothering us."

"Yeah!" Goldenheart yelled, making Foxspeckle jump. "We'll threaten to take his potato salad!"

 _That's not what I meant_ , thought Foxspeckle. He had thought of Goldenheart as more of a quiet, serious cat, not a loud, unreasonable one. What had happened?

"Or we'll threaten to take away the thing he loves the most," Goldenheart said, changing his mind.

"And what would that be?" Foxspeckle asked. Goldenheart's idea was still unreasonable, but not stupid.

Goldenheart murmured something under his breath.

"What's that? Say it louder," Foxspeckle told him, leaning in.

Goldenheart muttered again.

"What are you _saying_?" Foxspeckle asked, exasperated.

Goldenheart sighed. "The things he loves the most are…" The tom trailed off, sighing again. "Tigerlily and Goldenspider."

Foxspeckle twitched his ear, not quite believing it. Hopefully that wasn't true?

"Tumbleweed is going to pay…" Goldenheart growled menacingly.

 **Meanwhile…**

"Nice catch!" Tigerlily exclaimed appreciatively, looking down at the pigeon Tumbleweed had just brought down.

"Thanks," Tumbleweed meowed.

A sudden rustle in a patch of grass near Tigerlily told her there was prey. A plump mouse ran out in front of her, and she trapped it with unsheathed claws.

"Wow!" Tumbleweed said. "That was a great catch!"

Tigerlily grinned and attempted to move towards the tom, but was pulled into the bushes by some cat's paw.

"What?" the she-cat meowed, confused. Then she saw her golden-furred friend, Goldenspider. "Goldenspider?" She tilted her head curiously.

"Hey, Tigerlily," Goldenspider mewed sheepishly. "I just had to tell you, I think we should go back to Goldenheart and Foxspeckle. I'm getting a bad feeling about Tumbleweed."

"What do you mean?" Tigerlily asked, and then made a frustrated sound for no apparent reason.

"Well, did you see how angry they looked when we left?"

Tigerlily screamed. It's a wonder Tumbleweed didn't hear them, nor bother to come find them.

"What's _that_ for?" Goldenspider asked, frowning.

" _My phone went flat_!" Tigerlily cried out.

Goldenspider face pawed. "Were you even listening to what I just said?"

"Yeah," Tigerlily replied. "I saw that they looked all jealous and angry. If they care for us they should let us meet other cats besides them."

Goldenspider nodded in agreement. "But I have a feeling they're gonna punish Tumbleweed or something. You know, that's just toms." She smiled mischievously at her stereotypical comment.

"Toms. Can't live with them, can't live without them," Tigerlily sighed.

"True," Goldenspider agreed. "What should we do?"

"Well…" Tigerlily began. "I think Tumbleweed is cute but Goldenheart is handsome. Although, Goldenheart's too over-jel and protective. What do you think?"

"This isn't a matter of how good-looking they are!" Goldenspider exclaimed. "Goldenheart and Foxspeckle are gonna _do_ something!"

Tigerlily stuck out her tongue. "Well I'm _sorry_!" she huffed sarcastically. "I'm just trying to get my _life_ in order!"

Goldenspider groaned. "I'm going to go find Foxspeckle. Stay with Tumbleweed if you like." She stood up, ready to walk away.

"Nah, I'll come to find Goldenheart," Tigerlily said, standing up after her.

Suddenly, a golden brown figure jumped over the bush. "Hey," Tumbleweed meowed. "Wassup?"

Tigerlily tried to make her mouth go straight in an unsuspicious line, but she turned out looking more like a frog. Tumbleweed raised an eyebrow.

"Hey Tumbleweed…" Goldenspider squeaked nervously.

"We were uhhh…" Tigerlily tried to think of an excuse. "Hunting for…. Leaves."

"Mhm." Goldenspider nodded. "Hey! Look, another leaf!" She pointed at a leaf flying in the breeze. "Let's chase it and hope it goes to Foxspeckle… For no reason, of course!" She gave Tumbleweed, who looked very confused, a cheesy grin.

"And I need to help Goldenheart… Uhmm… Pickle his… Ugh… Toenails," Tigerlily excused herself. "Bye!" With that, both she-cats ran away.

"Oh…" Tumbleweed mewed. "Bye, I guess!" he yelled after them.

 **Goldenspider's POV**

Goldenspider and Tigerlily ran across the forest floor towards Fourtrees, the leafy ground soft against their feet. Goldenspider thought about how quick the time had gone by with Tumbleweed. She was sort of glad they left though because she saw very clearly the look of jealousy on both Foxspeckle and Goldenheart's faces. Wait… So did that mean Foxspeckle might like her back? But she'd been such a mouse-brain! What would he think of her now?

"Quick!" Tigerlily shouted as they reached Fourtrees. "There are the toms!"

Goldenheart bounded over to Tigerlily as soon as he saw her and licked her ear.

"Hey," Tigerlily meowed, nuzzling his ear. "Miss me?" She asked, although they hadn't been gone for very long at all.

"Heaps!" Goldenheart exclaimed. "I mean…" He coughed.

Goldenspider smiled at the two. They made _such_ a good couple. She turned to Foxspeckle as he padded toward her.

"Goldenspider, you're back! I mean- not that I care… Too much…" He smiled shyly.

Goldenspider smiled back and blushed. So he didn't care that she left him for Tumbleweed? Foxspeckle was chill like that anyway.

"Now, where is that crow-eater?!" Goldenheart demanded suddenly.

"Who…?"Foxspeckle asked, exchanging confused glances with Goldenspider and Tigerlily. Goldenspider snorted. What in StarClan was a _crow-eater_? Didn't he mean crow-food-eater?

"You know," Goldenheart sighed, like it was obvious. "Tumbleweed."

"Oh yeah…?"

"He's in the direction we just came," Goldenspider decided to put in. "In the forest-y part."

Goldenheart pulled a laptop out of nowhere and pushed glasses onto his nose, scrolling down a web page thoughtfully. "You shouldn't like Tumbleweed," he said. "We did some digging… Into his history, and he eats crow!"

"Don't you mean crow-food?" Tigerlily asked. Goldenspider was equally as confused as her friends.

"No, crow. He's too _flawless_ to eat crow-food," Goldenheart replied with a roll of his eyes.

Tigerlily snatched the laptop from him. "Gimme that!" She looked at the screen for a moment. "What are you talking about?" she meowed to Goldenheart. "He saved a kit from a _burning fire_!"

"Yeah?" Goldenheart answered challengingly. "Well _I_ saved a kit from an evil cat!"

"That was just Dawnheart giving him his medicine, doofus!" Tigerlily argued.

"Dawnheart _is_ evil-!"

"Guys, please don't argue," Foxspeckle interrupted.

"Yeah, let's just hunt or something," Goldenspider agreed. She didn't even know what Goldenheart and Tigerlily were arguing about. …Something weird.

"Okay, let's-"

Jadestar's shout interrupted her. "Let all warriors meet under the Great Rock! The Warrior Challenge is about to begin!" As the audience of cats rolled in she dipped her head to Orangestar, waiting for him to speak.

"I can't believe this is happening!" Tigerlily whispered to Goldenspider. "I'm so excited!" Goldenspider had to agree. She almost couldn't contain her excitement.

"Thank you Jadestar," Orangestar meowed. "The Warrior Challenge is a small group of challenges. In the sight of StarClan, let the Warrior Challenge begin!" He paused due to the cheering of the audience. As the loudness died down, he looked up to the sky and called. "StarClan, these brave, chosen warriors respect the warrior code and are loyal to their Clans. Please give us good condition for the Warrior Challenge!"

"Goldenspider," Tigerlily hissed.

Goldenspider turned to her. What did she want? The Warrior Challenge was about to start! "What?"

"Tumbleweed is coming," she said, fluttering her thick lashes.

 _That's all she wanted to say?_ Goldenspider rolled her eyes. Now Foxspeckle and Goldenheart would be all angry again.

"Oh no!" Tigerlily suddenly exclaimed.

Goldenspider jerked her head up. _Was something wrong?!_

"MY IPOD WENT FLAT!" Tigerlily moaned, receiving another eye roll from Goldenspider. _Was that all?_

"Oh no! Foxspeckle just spotted Tumbleweed. Oh no! So did Goldenheart! Oh no! I left my iPod charger at camp! Oh no! I think I'm addicted to saying 'oh no'! OH NO!" Tigerlily shouted.

"Just calm down," Goldenspider soothed calmly.

"WHY?! MY LIFE IS OVER!"

"What?" Goldenspider said. _What was wrong with her?_ "Stop being ridiculous and listen to Orangestar."

"The first test is tree climbing!" Orangestar announced from the Great Rock.

Goldenspider silently cheered in her mind. She loved climbing trees! It was one of the few things she was actually good at.

"ORANGESTAR!" Tigerlily's voice boomed as she ran over to her father.

Orangestar jumped in surprise, his vibrant orange fur bristling and looked around as if a bear might jump out of nowhere. "What?!" he cried.

Tigerlily drooped her head against his side and asked calmly, "What tree are we climbing?"

Orangestar relaxed. "Uh… Skypine," he decided.

"Okay-dokay," Tigerlily trotted back over to Goldenspider, oblivious to the number of cats giving her strange looks.

"I climb Skypine all the time! I've got this." Goldenspider said, her blue-green eyes shining with anticipation.

"How? Isn't it in StormClan territory?" Tumbleweed, who was then at her side, asked.

 _Oops._ She hadn't realised what she'd said. Yes, it was true; she did indeed climb Skypine all the time, but that didn't mean she was supposed to. Goldenspider wasn't supposed to do a lot of the things she did. "I-I uhmm. I must be mistaken for a different tree," she muttered.

Tumbleweed nodded hesitantly.

"Clans, choose your competitors!" Orangestar meowed loudly. He paused, waiting a few minutes for the soft murmuring of the cats below him to pass by. Goldenspider looked over at Redfeather questioningly, hoping she would let her do the first challenge. Thankfully, Redfeather gave her a nod and Goldenspider stood up, along with the other chosen warriors, which at the moment happened to be only Flatface and Foxspeckle.

Goldenheart and Tigerlily were quarrelling quietly, but that didn't stop almost all of the cats, including the audience, from turning to stare at them. Goldenheart stood up, but then Tigerlily shoved him back down, standing up herself. Goldenheart got back onto his feet, and irritated expression on his face, and pushed Tigerlily into a pile of leaves.

" _STORMCLAN_!" Orangestar boomed threateningly, causing everyone to flinch.

" _ME_!" Goldenheart and Tigerlily shouted in unison, afterwards turning to glare at each other.

"Guys, seriously?" Goldenspider said in a low voice. "It's not a big deal…" She didn't understand why they were fighting about climbing up a tree.

"Yes! It! _Is_!" The two StormClan warriors again yelled at the same time, beginning to bat at each other with their paws in a kit-like manner.

Foxspeckle peeled them apart. "Just chill out," he said. "It doesn't matter who climbs the _tree_." Goldenspider nodded, agreeing.

"Your face doesn't matter," Tigerlily retorted.

Foxspeckle looked very taken aback, despite the childish comeback. "Well…" He stuttered. "Well, your life doesn't matter…" he replied lamely.

Tigerlily snorted. "At least I don't have the waa-balance on speed dial!"

"BURN!" Goldenheart exclaimed, giving Tigerlily a high-five and apparently forgetting their argument for a moment.

Goldenspider saw the sad look on Foxspeckle's face and decided to stand up for him, although Tigerlily's comments weren't very insulting. "Don't bully!" she told them.

Then Goldenspider noticed Flatface strolling through the crowd of amused cats towards her. _Oh no…_ She wasn't even worried about the number of cats staring at them. She was more worried about the fact that she had thought Flatface would leave her alone forever.

"Excuse me," Flatface said politely. "I tried to make our relationship work and for _what_?! You are a _huge_ B-U-L-L-Y!"

 _What? Who is he even talking to? I did even say anything rude… Not just now anyway_ , Goldenspider thought, confused. Flatface had issues and he probably should have got them dealt with a long time ago. "We had _no_ relationship, Flatface! Geez! Just get out of my life!" She shouted, finally losing her whole temper at him. She could've sworn he was crazy.

Foxspeckle patted her back calmly. "Chill…" he soothed.

"Stop saying chill!" Tigerlily yelled at him. "You screamed for twelve and a half hours just because you had a tiny thorn on your pad! You cry baby!" she mocked.

Goldenspider smacked a paw against her head. Why was Tigerlily suddenly acting so mean?

"I did not!" Foxspeckle shouted back indignantly. "Liar! Let me at her!" He tried to run forward, but Goldenspider grabbed his hind legs and pulled him back. No one would get hurt before the Warrior Challenge on her watch.

"Whoa, chill!" Goldenheart meowed.

"Kindly stop using my favourite word," Foxspeckle seethed.

"Yeah." Tigerlily agreed. "Besides, Foxspeckle sounds more like this:" she sat down, slumping her shoulders supposedly in an impression of Foxspeckle. "Whoa…" she said in a slow, deep voice, dragging out her syllables as she spoke. "…Chill… Guys… Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch Chiiiilllll!"

"So now you're accusing me of being a hippie?" Foxspeckle demanded. "You… You galumphing badger!" He scrambled at the ground, but Goldenspider still had hold of him.

"Just chill," Goldenspider sighed. "Everyone." She wished her friends would stop arguing.

Goldenheart and Tigerlily just giggled at what she said took turns saying 'chill!' in annoying, high-pitched voices over and over again.

Goldenspider noticed that everyone in the crowd, including the leaders perched on the Great Rock, looked quite annoyed at this point.

"From this moment on," Cloudstar announced. "No cat will say the word 'chill'."

"Yes, think of it as a blessing," Stonestar muttered, unable for anyone to hear.

"Oh my StarClan!" Foxspeckle shrieked. "I officially love you, Cloudstar!"

Cloudstar gave the young warrior a strange look and Foxspeckle looked down and coughed, embarrassed. "Sorry," he murmured.

After a moment of awkward silence, Cloudstar continued. "Tigerlily, Goldenheart, have you decided?"

Tigerlily turned to Goldenheart. "Sharp rock, leaf, log?" she asked.

 _Finally_ , Goldenspider silently thanked StarClan. They had found a way to settle the situation.

"Yeah," Goldenheart replied.

Tigerlily won the game and shouted, "Yes, I'll do it!"

"Chill," Goldenheart mumbled under his breath.

Goldenspider seemed to be the only one who heard him. "Disrespectful behaviour from you, Goldenheart," she tutted playfully, although she didn't really care for leaders' new rule about not saying 'chill'.

Goldenheart looked up, grinned and stuck out his tongue. "Chill!" he said in a fake squeaky voice.

"Great, if the four competitors could please come to Skypine," Orangestar said, leaping down from the rock, the other leaders following him. The competitors and all the other cats who had come to watch followed too.

"Good luck," Flatface hissed into Goldenspider's ear as they approached the humungous pine tree. "If ya win, I might take ya back." He waggled his brows at her, and Goldenspider ran away in disgust.

She heard Flatface murmur something as she walked away. "She's just scared of her true feelings for me," he said.

Goldenspider gagged. Did he really think they should be together? She didn't think so… Goldenspider flicked her ear, as she felt a drop of something wet inside that could have been Flatface's spit. Yuck.


	4. Chapter 4

**Foxspeckle's POV**

Foxspeckle looked at Goldenspider, an anxious look in his brown eyes. Skypine was so tall! "I'm not used to climbing," he admitted. "There are hardly any trees in my home."

Goldenspider flashed him a mischievous smile. "Just watch me," she said.

Tigerlily had a smirk on her face. "I thought hippies lived in trees," she teased. Foxspeckle pouted. She was still at it! Why was she being so rude to him?

"Leave it, Tigerlily," Goldenspider said, giving her a warning look, to Foxspeckle's relief. "Let's go."

Foxspeckle gulped as he looked up at the huge pine tree again. How would he ever climb it? It was the biggest tree he'd ever seen! Not that he'd seen many trees in his own home, but as far as he was concerned, Skypine definitely fitted its name!

"Don't worry, my little hippy friend," Tigerlily continued, much to Foxspeckle's annoyance. She slid an arm over his shoulder. "I won't let you fall… Who would I tease? …And I kinda, sorta care… If you die," she confessed, her voice getting smaller and smaller with every word.

Foxspeckle wished that she would quit calling him a hippy. Did he _really_ look like one? Is that what she thought? He thought they were friends…

"Tigerlily…" Goldenspider warned again, shooting her a glance.

"What?" Tigerlily retorted. "I was actually trying to be nice that time!" she turned to Foxspeckle. "If you feel like you're going to fall, just stop and mew to come down."

Foxspeckle nodded. He hoped that wouldn't happen though, that he would get stuck. His belly churned as he stared at the tree with dread. He tried to convince himself he wouldn't freak out and that nothing bad would happen.

Goldenspider flicked her tail against his shoulder. "Come on," she said sweetly, but not in a tone a cat would use on a kit.

He followed her as all the competitors lined up a few fox-lengths away from the base of the tree. "On your tails," Jadestar boomed from a smaller tree nearby. "Get set! GO!"

Foxspeckle felt flustered as Tigerlily and Goldenspider immediately leapt onto different sides of the tree with equal grace and agility. They began to claw their way up quickly and Goldenspider stopped for a second, looking down at Foxspeckle with a beckoning look in her eyes.

Foxspeckle hesitated, then ran and jumped up onto the lowest branch he could see, a lot less gracefully than Goldenspider had. _I'll make her proud_ , he thought with determination.

Meanwhile, Flatface was sitting at the bottom of Skypine in a yellow-and-white striped lounge chair, sipping from a coconut drink. " _GO_!" Jadestar screamed at him. Flatface glanced in her direction, shrugged and then slipped on sunglasses, oblivious to what was happening. Jadestar face pawed while Flatface took another loud sip of coconut through a swirly straw.

Foxspeckle watched in dismay as Tigerlily climbed at least five fox-lengths above him and Goldenspider wasn't too far behind her. He leapt up in a desperate attempt to get closer to Goldenspider, but the branch he landed on swayed dangerously and he stopped for a moment. Regrettably, he looked down below. Foxspeckle immediately squished his eyes shut. It was too far down! What if he fell?

"Come on!" Goldenspider called to him.

The branch wobbled again and Foxspeckle looked up at her with scared eyes.

"Go Goldenspider!" He heard Tumbleweed's voice shout from the crowd. "Go on beautiful!"

Foxspeckle narrowed his eyes. How _dare_ he just call _his_ girlfriend –future girlfriend- beautiful? Foxspeckle felt a surge of determination run through him and he moved up to the next branch. He would prove himself more worthy than that arrogant fur ball.

Flatface still lay on his lounge chair, coconut shells lying all around him. He was going through his eleventh drink when he suddenly noticed the other warriors had started!

"Is that Foxspeckle?" He said to himself, confused. Then he spat coconut from his mouth. "Has the race started?!" Flatface exclaimed, coconut milk dribbling down his chin. "Why didn't anyone tell me?"

Jadestar sighed. She _tried_ to tell him.

" _What do you think_?" Foxspeckle roared from above. He jumped to the next branch and much to his horror, almost slipped.

Flatface glared. "I will kill you for stealing my GF!" He said evilly, then scrambled up the tree trunk after Foxspeckle.

Tigerlily was nearly at the top when she shouted to Flatface, "Chill!"

Goldenspider looked at Flatface, who was grinning creepily and clawing his way up quickly. "Run!" she cried. "I mean- _CLIMB_!" She moved up more quickly.

Foxspeckle jumped after her, only to slip on a patch of wet moss. _Oh no!_ he thought, scrabbling at the sharp pine needles helplessly. He felt as if he was moving in slow motion as he flailed past Flatface, who was giving him an evil stare. Foxspeckle hit a branch a few fox-lengths down from where he was, pain jolting through his spine.

"OWWWWW!" he yelped.

" _Foxspeckle_!" Tigerlily and Goldenspider shrieked in unison. Both she-cats started leaping down to his level.

It was as if all the cats started to crowd around him, except for Jadestar who still sat on the leaders' tree. "And the winner is…" she announced excitedly. "Tigerlily!" She started clapping and cheering wildly until she looked around, realising no one was listening and slouched over disappointedly.

"Are you okay?" Goldenheart asked as he leapt up to Foxspeckle's branch.

Foxspeckle moved slightly and another searing pain shot through him. "Fine," he said through gritted teeth. Then added, dropping his voice to a mutter, "I think." He should have made Copperheart climb the tree.

At that point, Goldenspider had reached him. "Are you okay?" she asked worriedly. Foxspeckle tried to smile at her, but it only turned out very weak. He loved how much she cared about him.

"It's okay- I'm okay," Foxspeckle told her, trying to sound reassuring. "My head just hurts a bit." That wasn't true. _All_ of him hurt. He stood up carefully, his legs shaking violently.

Goldenspider creased her brow. "Are you _sure_?"

Foxspeckle nodded.

"Out of my way!" demanded Tigerlily's voice as she shoved Flatface aside.

Flatface slid to the end of the branch he was on and put his paws on his chest dramatically. "Goodbye, cruel world!" he wailed as he tipped off the edge. Nobody seemed to care he was probably plunging to his death.

"Foxspeckle…" Tigerlily whipped her head around. " _WHO HURT MY LITTLE HIPPY FRIEND_?!" she exclaimed in a demonic voice.

"Just chill!" Foxspeckle meowed. "I am fine." To try and prove it so, he limped down to the ground very painfully.

"Foxspeckle…" Goldenspider started. "You should really see a medicine cat." She looked at him with genuine worry in her turquoise-coloured eyes.

"I'm okay, really," Foxspeckle told her, even though it was obviously not true. "Don't worry."

"Why are you limping then?" The she-cat pressed on. "That was quite a fall, you know?"

Foxspeckle groaned, pretending to be annoyed, but he actually wasn't at all. He just felt sort of stupid for falling off the tree in front of everyone. "If I see a medicine cat, will you quit worrying?" he asked.

"Yes!" Goldenspider exclaimed, licking his ear. Foxspeckle smiled. She was so cute.

"I'll get a medicine cat!" Tigerlily offered, immediately running off. " _COALSTORM_!" she yowled.

"Wait," a dark grey tom said, leaping up.

"Coalstorm, you can help him, right?" she asked, flicking her tail towards Foxspeckle. " _Pleeeaassseee_?"

Goldenheart rested his tail on her shoulder comfortingly. "Calm down, Tigerlily," he mewed. "Foxspeckle will be fine."

"But it's my entire fault he fell!" she moaned. "I was mean and-" she cut off and started to wail like a kit. " _It's all my fault_!" Tigerlily grabbed Orangestar who happened to be beside her and blew her nose into his pelt, much to Orangestar's disgust.

 _She's such a drama queen_ , Foxspeckle thought with a roll of his eyes.

"Never fear, I'll heal him," Coalstorm said. "But I'll need help…" He began to murmur to himself.

"Tigerlily, it's not even that bad," Foxspeckle licked her ear reassuringly. Then he smiled as he said, "Chill…"

Tigerlily looked up, tears streaming down her tabby face. She hiccupped. "Really?" she asked.

"Yeah," he replied.

Coalstorm had moved in front of Foxspeckle and was inspecting his paw, along with the rest of his body, to be sure there wasn't injuries anywhere else. "I think you have twisted your paw," he declared. Foxspeckle nodded. "And a claw is bleeding," Coalstorm continued. "Your head is bleeding also."

 _It… was?_ Foxspeckle lifted a paw to touch his head, but it didn't come back with any blood. His head _was_ aching though.

"I'll need marrow and cobwebs, maybe some yarrow…"

Foxspeckle's eyes widened. _Yarrow? Didn't that make you throw up?_ He thought.

Seeing Foxspeckle's expression, Coalstorm added, "You swallowed some dirt. You also could use some water… Maybe fresh-kill…"

Foxspeckle and everyone else around him frowned. "Is anything else wrong with me?" he asked eventually, half amused. He didn't really think he needed all those things, not that he'd disobey a medicine cat.

"Yeah, you might have an ear infection…" Coalstorm meowed. Foxspeckle heard some cat snicker and walk away. "Cut muzzle… Cobwebs… Blood…" Coalstorm murmured vaguely, staring off into the distance.

"Coalstorm," Tigerlily said.

"What?!" he said, alarmed. "Oh, right." He mumbled to himself again.

Foxspeckle flicked his ear. Coalstorm was a _strange_ medicine cat.

Tigerlily cleared her throat. "I'll go get cobwebs," she informed. Taking a look at Foxspeckle's paw, she added, "Lots of cobwebs. Anything for Foxspeckle." She ran off.

Foxspeckle took a look at his paw himself. Was it really that bad?

"Need anything else, Coalstorm?" Goldenspider asked.

"I might need an apprentice to fetch and carry-"

"Me!" Tigerlily shouted before he could finish. _That was quick_ , Foxspeckle thought. As she ran over Foxspeckle could see she was covered from head to toe in cobwebs. "I'll do it!"

Foxspeckle purred in amusement. It wasn't necessary getting _that_ many cobwebs. Tigerlily rushed over to him, shaking the webs from her pelt. "Are you comfortable?" she asked, her emerald green eyes wide with worry. "Hungry, thirsty, tired, bored?!" she went on.

Foxspeckle just laughed. "Just chill," he told her.

"Okay!" Tigerlily exclaimed. "I'll get you some ice cubes. _Chilled_ ice cubes." She ran off again.

"Tigerlily! Come back!" Goldenspider called out. "He meant 'calm down'!"

Tigerlily spun around and walked back to them. "Did that amuse you, Foxspeckle?" she asked.

Foxspeckle chuckled. "I guess it did," he replied.

Orangestar came towards the group. "Coalstorm," he said, addressing the medicine cat. Coalstorm looked up from his pile of herbs. "Will Foxspeckle be well enough to compete?" Orangestar inquired.

Foxspeckle noticed Tigerlily fur bristling up. "How can you even think about the Warrior Challenge at a time like this?" she muttered, her mouth almost curled into a snarl. _StarClan_ , Foxspeckle thought, _she needs to calm down_. _I only fell from a tree…_

"Copperheart can fill me in," Foxspeckle answered, trying to sound positive. They would've shared around the activities anyway. "If I'm not well enough that is."

"Which you probably are," Goldenspider put in for him.

Coalstorm mumbled to himself, sorting through some leaves.

"Coalstorm," Tigerlily said, nudging him.

"Hm? Sorry. Foxspeckle cannot compete," Coalstorm replied casually.

Tigerlily wailed.

"What?" Foxspeckle asked, shocked. "Please," he begged. "I'm fine! Look!" He stood up shakily, an aching pain flooding through his front leg. He gritted his teeth.

"Sit down!" Goldenspider scolded. "You'll hurt yourself."

Foxspeckle obeyed. She had a point and he was grateful for that. Coalstorm began plastering a mixture of strange-smelling herbs over his paw.

"Wait!" Tigerlily cried, loud enough for all the cats to hear. Everyone turned to her. "Only one can be eliminated and that is…" she paused, giving her speech a dramatic effect. "Flatface!" She pointed a finger at Flatface, who was wandering about, having somehow survived his fall. He stopped when he realised every cat was staring at him and slowly pointed to his chest.

"….Me?" he squeaked.

"He caused Foxspeckle to fall!" Tigerlily exclaimed.

Foxspeckle looked down as all the cats gasped and turned their gazes to him. Then the audience of cats shrugged and went back to whatever they were doing.

"Well, I, uh…" Flatface sputtered.

 _Oh yeah…_ Foxspeckle thought, narrowing his eyes. Flatface _had_ made him fall! Coalstorm was ignoring everything around him as he wrapped a thick layer of cobwebs around Foxspeckle's paw.

Flatface blushed and ran away.

"So now seven remain!" Tigerlily announced, looking at Foxspeckle.

"Thanks," Foxspeckle told her. "For keeping me in and all."

Tigerlily grinned. "You're welcome!"

Orangestar looked annoyed as he clambered onto the Great Rock, the audience crowding around. "Fine!" he said, exasperated. "Foxspeckle, you must miss the next challenge." Foxspeckle nodded. "Cloudstar," Orangestar continued, turning to the elderly white she-cat beside him. "The next challenge please?"

Cloudstar cleared her throat. "The next challenge will be… Swimming across Starry River!"


End file.
